Ticket recorder



March 6, 1962 N. E. J. STAHL ET AL TICKET RECORDER, RECORDING COUNTER OR THE LIKE Filed Sept. 23, 1960 IN VENTORS B YM M A RNEYS March 6 1962 N. E. J. STAHL ET AL 3,023,950

TICKET RECORDER, RECORDING COUNTER OR TRE LIKE Filed Sept. 23, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WMM ATT RNEYS ite States Fatented Mar. 6, 1962 3,023,950 TICKET RECGRDER, RECRDING COUNTER GR THE LIKE Nils Evert Johan Stahl, I-Iiortstigen I8, Stoclrlund, Sweden, and @scar Uno Larsson, Pettersbergsvagen 86,

Mai "hoiden, Sweden Filed Sept. 23, 1960, Ser. No. 58,097 1 Claim. (Cl. 23S-1) This application is a continuation-in-part of applicants prior copending application Serial No. 477,881, led Dec. 27, 1954, now abandoned.

There are known already different kinds of ticket recorders, recording counters or like apparatus, which are provided with manually operable setting means consisting of depressable keys, turnab-le discs or swingable sectorshaped elements. The ticket recorder of the latter type is now on the market and although th-is invention relates in the iirst place to this latter type of apparatus, it is just as applicable to other types of apparatus comprising counting and registering mechanism enclosed in a casing.

This invention has for its object to facilitate the production of said apparatuses, the numerous elements of which require great accuracy in manufacture as well as in mounting. According to the invention, this problem is solved in the `lirst place in that three separate disc-shaped frame parts are held together by a rod located within the casing and common for said parts, said rod fixing these parts in such positions relative to one another that together they form a rigid `and stable U-shaped frame, the shank or end parts serving to carry the shafts of the mechanism. This construction offers a great many technical advantages, which will appear from the following description of an embodiment of the invention. ln this embodiment the frame part extending between the end parts also constitutes the rear portion of the casing and is provided with inwardly directed flanges or lugs, in which the rod fixing the frame parts is inserted. In a modification of the above-mentioned embodiment the flanges of the rear portion are adapted so as to form the end parts of the apparatus, which parts are thus directly connected with the rear portion. Whichever design is chosen, it is in both cases possible to let the said tix-ing rod constitute the origin in a system or coordinates, which is used as a base for calculating and determining the positions of 'the various shafts comprised in the mechanism.

A further object of the invention is to provide the transversely spaced-apart end portions of the frame each with an elongated opening spaced from a rst rod-receiving opening, the said elongated openings having their elongated axis and side walls extending in the direction of a reference line connecting the centers of the said elongated openings and the iirst openings, respectively, and the transverse dimensions of said elongated openings being precisely the same, within practical limits, as the diameter of 4a shaft which extends therethrough when assembled, the said elongation serving the purpose of facilitating insertion of said shaft in said openings while the exact correspondence of the transverse dimension to the diameter of said shaft locates the shaft with great exactitude for providing precise and exact location of other elements carried by said shaft when in assembled condition.

A still further object of this invention is to further facilitate assembly of the machine parts with exactitude with the elimination of tolerances usually required which have, in the prior art, permitted mislocation of elements and consequent delay and excessive labor in the assembling of the machines. This object is attained by the provision, in the machine frame of guiding devices in which transversely extending parts, located usually intermediate the end plates of the frame, such as plates, or

rails, or guide-containing members, or the like, are initially guided somewhat loosely to allow suicient movement thereof to facilitate insertion of the said rod and said shaft through openings in said transversely extending parts, located usually intermediate the end plates of the frame, such as plates, rails, or guide-containing members, or the like, are initially guided somewhat loosely to allow suicient movement thereof to facilitate insertion of the said rod and said shaft through openings in said transversely extending parts which openings can be made with dimensions corresponding very closely to the diameters of said rod and shaft respectively, thus eliminating to a large extent tolerances which allow mislocations and providing for very exact positioning of said transverse parts and other parts carried or guided thereby.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which FIGURE 1 is a front view of the apparatus with several of its frame and casing parts dismounted.

EFIG. 2 is a side view of the apparatus along the line II-II in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a section along the line III- III in FIG. l.

FIG. 4 shows in front view the lfront portion of the casing and FIG. 5 is a cross section through this front portion along the line V--V in FIG. 4.

In this embodiment the rear portion of the casing comprises a frame part I, which is provided with inwardly directed flanges 2, 3. A frame end part 5 can be connected with the flange 2 by means of screws 4. In approximately the same way a second frame end part 6 can be connected with the other ange 3 by means of screws 7. The frame parts 1, 5 and 6 are iixed at their upper portions in such positions relatively on to another by means of a common rod 8 extending through the frame end parts 5 and 6 as Well as the tlanges 2` and 3, that said parts are forming `a U-shaped frame. A shaft 9 located farther down is secured in a corresponding way between the above-mentioned frame parts and serves to further stabilize the frame, the holes 9 through which shaft 9` extends through the frame parts being slightly elongated, and fitting shaft 9 precisely in their short dimension and having slight play in their long dimension to facilitate passage of shaft 9 therethrough, yet. thereafter, due to the correspondence between the dimension of the width of holes 9 and the diameter of shaft 9, providing for exact and fixed location of shaft 9 relative to the frame, and naturally of other machine parts mounted on or guided thereby directly or indirectly. In the drawing a reference or center line connecting the centers of holes 8 and 9 is designated by reference character A and the sides of elongated opening 9 are shown, in extension by broken lines B as being parallel with line A.

A number of holes receiving the shafts of the mechanism are provided in the frame end parts. The positions of these holes are calculated in accordance with a coordinate system, in which the rod 8 is the origin. This makes it possible to obtain great accuracy in the calculation of the hole positions and to obtain the intended co-operation between the machine elements when mounting the latter.

The embodiment shown in the drawing refers to the type of apparatuses in which manually operated setting means 10 are displaceable along sector-shaped guide rails I2 provided with guiding grooves 11 for the means 10. Only one guide rail with setting means is shown by way of example in the drawing, the number of rails however being optional. The rails may also be designed to guide key controlled and linearly adjustable setting means. Whichever kind of guide rails are used, the rods 8 and 9 are the elements fixing their positions in the longitudinal 3 direction. The rails are iixed in the transverse direction partly by means of recesses 13, M and 15 provided in the frame part l and receiving the rail ends, partly by means of a supporting axle i6. The latter, which is shown only in section in FiG. 3, is provided with transverse grooves receiving the edge portions of the guide rails i2. Due to the abo-ve arrangement, the guide rails will be retained in their relative positions in the longitudinal as well as in the transverse direction, and this ensures a good functioning of the elements, the work of which depends on the exact fixing of the 'guide rails.

The frame part l is provided at the top thereof with two hook-shaped projections 17. These are arranged to be inserted in recesses 18 (FiG. 5) located in a casing portion *19, which forms the casing front and is provided with apertures required for operating the setting means and with reading-off apertures respectively as well as with recesses for discharging tickets or receipts. After the projections i7 and the recesses i8 have been brought into engagement with each other and the casing portion has been swung down and placed in such a position that its lower edge portion has entered a groove-shaped recess 20 in the frame part 1, which constitutes a bottom portion of the casing, it is possible to prevent any unwanted dismounting of the thus united parts by means of a locking means. In this embodiment, said locking means consists of a shaft 21, which in this case is mounted in lugs 22, 23 provided on the inside of the front casing portion 19. However, the shaft can to advantage be mounted also in the frame end parts 5 and 6. The two end portions of the shaft 2, which are forming the locking surfaces, are semicircular, as is best seen from FIG. 4, and by putting a screw driver into a slot 24 the shaft can be turned around and its locking surfaces be engaged with or disengaged from locking surfaces 25 (FiGS. 2 and 3) provided in the frame end parts 5 and 6. The end portion of the shaft Z1 is formed as a screw head which is sunk into the lug 23, and thus it is possible to pre-Vent unwanted dismounting of or insight into the apparatus.

However, it is also desirable -to prevent an unwarranted person from re-setting or actuate such operating and gear elements which are located on the `outside of, for instance, the end part 5. To this purpose a number of screws 26 are provided in the end part 5, two of which appear in FIG. l, and which can be screwed into an end part guard 27 (FIG. l). These screws can be screwed in from the interior of the apparatus only, and only before the front casing portion i9 has been brought into position and the shaft 2l sealed. Thus, after the frame parts and casing portions have been joined, it is iinpossible to obtain contact with those essential elements of the machine without iirst breaking the seal.

The frame part i extends beyond the end part o and the space thereby afforded on the outside of the end part is intended to accommodate the printing device, co-lor ribbon, control and/or receipt strips of the machine. This space must be accessible to the person using the apparatus. For this reason, a casing portion Z8 is hinged to the part 1. Secured in lugs Z9 on the inside of said casing portion 2S are pins 36. The latter can be inserted in grooves 31 provided in the part i. Each groove 31 is divided into two groove halves by an incision 32 extending inwardly from the edge of the part 1. The pins 30 are arranged to be releasably retained in the grooves 3i by elastical tongues 33, which are indicated by chain-dotted lines in FIG. 1. Possibly the pins 3i) can be so bevelled, that the beveiled faces retain the casing portion 2S in its swung-out position through co-operation with the tongues 33. When closed, the portion 2S can be locked by means of a lock actuated by a key 34.

The above described invention makes it possible to obtain, with simple elements, an accurately built machine, which is easy to mount and the integrating parts of which can be forced to function in accordance with a predetermined work diagram despite their great number and different tasks. If, in accordance with the above suggestion for a modification, the frame is to be designed in such a way that the flanges of the rear part are adapted into end parts, this will also afford a fully satisfactoryI construction, as already the mounting of a single fixing rod forming the origin in the suggested coordinate system will align the frame parts and thus also further shafts comprised in the mechanism.

We claim:

In a machine of the class described provided with a frame, said frame having end plates each having an opening, the centers of said openings serving as the origins of coordinate systems, a rod extending through said openings, machine parts extending transversely of said rod and each having an opening through which said rod passes, said plates each having a second opening spaced from the said first openings, respectively, at precise positions in said coordinate system, said second openings each being elongated in the directions of the first openings, respectively, and having their side walls parallel to lines connecting the centers of the said openings of said end plates respectively, a shaft extending through said second openings, said second openings being of precisely the same width, transversely of the direction of their elongation, as the diameter of the shaft passing therethrough, said set of transversely extending machine parts also having openings through which said rod and shaft extend, fixed precisely in position by said rod and shaft when assembled, said frame having guide abutment surfaces engaging parts of said transversely extending machine parts to hold said parts against movements lateral of their directions of extent while allowing said transversely extending parts to move in the direction of their direction of extent to facilitate mounting of said transverse parts on said rod and shaft;

No references cited. 

